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Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Today Mad Scientist has the pleasure of presenting a Audio Book Review for a very curious Middle Grade book, Zoe & Zak and the Tiger Temple is the third book in the series. It was a creative ride through the eyes of young minds.

Zoe & Zak and the Tiger Temple is the third in the series. We find ourselves back at the Himalayan boarding school that serves up the worst food imaginable, Moonstock Academy. During this whirlwind adventure Zak finds himself with an odd power and a pet parrot named Open Sesame. The beginning of the book starts during the trip their group has won in the previous book. They are in Bhutan, a country between India and Thailand, passing out medical supplies in mountainous villages. Zak ends up getting really sick, so sick that everyone is worried he might not make it. Do you remember the ghastly food from the second book? Mad Scientist just found it so amusing to listen to them run to sign up for the vegetarian menu for the semester with only a few spots to spare. Whew. That was a close one.The powerful Goddess Durga set Zoe & Zak out on new task, in search of the second noble truth also known as The Tiger Eye of Justice. They must of done so well retrieving the first noble truth in Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse. However, this time it is a race to find the second noble truth to save the Tiger People & to save Zak's life before the tiger stripes cover his body. At some point Zak pops a bubble meant for Zoe and ends up with his own unique power. He even names himself as the "Creature Teacher". It was a great twist to see the characters change and develop. In this third installment of the series there is a depressed magic carpet, a new rich kid with maids and trunks galore, a science fair, & a massive downhill bike ride and some serious rides through the mountain hills.

Surly, one cannot be sure what will be had when you enter into a Zoe & Zak adventure. Anything goes with the magical hills of India With that being so there were chuckles and laughs in between the inner shouts for them to watch out for what is lurking under the water. Sonja is a wonderful narrator. MS tries to stay away from females voices because they tend to grate on the eardrum a tad too much. Yet, Sonja's presentation of both Zoe & Zak as well as the rest of the cast was very enjoyable. Each character was distinct so MS never felt the internal need as to guess which character it was supposed to be.

** Thanks to Candace's Book Promotions for the ebook. However, all Mad thoughts are presented in as right of mind a twisted brain can be inside of this Mad Scientist!**

Prior to writing novels, Lars Guignard wrote for film and television. As a teenager he attended boarding school in the Indian Himalayas and his experiences there provided the inspiration for the Zoe and Zak series which now include: Zoe & Zak and the Ghost Leopard and Zoe & Zak and the Yogi’s Curse and Zoe & Zak and the Tiger Temple.

He lives in the Pacific Northwest where he dodges bears and cougars while hiking & skiing the magnificent Coast Mountain Range.

For news about new releases, please join his email list here: Zoe&ZakAdventures@gmail.com

Sonja Field combines her life-long passion for reading with her skill as an actress to bring audiobooks to life! A dynamic and versatile narrator, she has logged hundreds of hours recording textbooks with an organization called Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic. She loved recording the action-packed Zoe & Zak and the Yogi's Curse because of its wealth of colorful, quirky, and memorable characters.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Today the Mad Scientist is taking part in another wonderful blog tour & it is a pleasure for Mad Steam to be one of the lovely stops on Broken Arrows Blog Tour by Chelsey Butler.

If you fancy yourself taking on a fun book for a future tour contact the lovely Candace at Candace's Book Blog & CBB Book Promotions. Candace is an excellent host & only recommends books that she has read and enjoyed herself. If you have not noticed MS does enjoy being apart of the tours.

Broken Arrows is a fantasy fiction book you did not know you were looking for. The humor is plenty, the characters are enjoyable and the plot was great. Of course, MS did not read the synopsis so perhaps this may be the cause of an extra pleasing shock but either way it is going to join my pile of books that Candace has sent my way & MS has enjoyed more than expected. (The pile is huge.)If you are a reader... Do not doubt Candace's way of handing you a recommendation. Most likely you will love. Broken Arrows Inn is owned by Cari, a young lady with some close friends, a broken heart, and a history of botching love potions. Yes, you read correctly. Love potions. Back when MS was young I do believe my want of a love potion was high. However, now MS finds single life to be strong and beautiful. Plus, the high rate of probability of not working out makes it not worth the mess. One must not get their lacy gloves full of mess. Cari, is a descendant of Cupid. How beautiful! *blushes* a cute little cupid. However, not so in this story. Cupid is a father. A father who has past before he hand enough time to teach Cari all that she needs to know about matching people and mixing the potions held within a huge book. Toss in her broken heart love interest. Mike left town, married and now he is back. Divorced & working on the local police force. Cari swore she would not speak of him to her friends Roxy & Hope. Yet, he seems to be popping up around all kinds of corners.The best fun and an event that MS would love to attend is being held by Cari at her lovely Broken Arrows Inn, a Murder Mystery weekend. *grin* Would MS be the doctor to pronouce the victim deceased or the murderer? Hmm...

You may not believe in Cupid but MS does believe this is fun book that you will enjoy.

** Thanks to Candace's Book Promotions for the ebook. However, all Mad thoughts are presented in as right of mind a twisted brain can be inside of this Mad Scientist!**

Chelsey Butler was born and raised near Fort Worth, Texas. She still lives in north Texas with her husband and four daughters, but she rebels against the Texan stereotype. She loves God, her family, and all things involving books, and is a self-proclaimed nerd, a history buff, and vintage enthusiast. She also writes young adult fantasy under the name S.G. Tillery. Chelsey loves hearing from her fans and encourages them to find her on Facebook.